Ukraine in talks on getting long-range missiles from several countries – FM Kuleba
While the United States remains reluctant
to provide Ukraine with ATACMS
missiles, Kyiv is negotiating long-range weapon supplies with several other
countries, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told Ukrainian TV
broadcasters on June 22. The minister acknowledged that Washington is the
largest provider of military aid to Ukraine, for which he expressed gratitude.
Throughout the war, the minister said, Ukraine needed seven types of weapons it had to “unlock.”
“Each conversation was tough, initially met with a 'no,” said Kuleba.
“But we ultimately received everything – Western artillery, HIMARS, Patriot air defense, and we will get planes. But the ATACMS issue remains unresolved."
According to Kuleba, it's a rare instance where the United States isn't the first country to transfer weapons to Ukraine.
"The UK was the first (country to provide long-range weapons), and we are sincerely grateful," he said.
"We're working with other countries to convince them to do the same. The United States refuses to participate. There are several reasons (for that), but we're continuing the conversation."
Kuleba expressed regret that the Washington hasn't agreed to supply ATACMS but remains confident that "this issue will be resolved one way or another."
Earlier, Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov noted that Western countries haven't provided Ukraine with ATACMS due to a worldwide shortage and fears that Ukrainian forces might target Russian territory.
On May 11, CNN reported that London had sent several long-range Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Kyiv. UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace later confirmed the missiles would only be used on Ukraine's sovereign territory.
The Pentagon stated that the provision of Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine didn't affect Washington's stance on long-range missiles supplies.
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